The present invention relates to apparatus for cleaning carbon deposits from the inner surfaces of the exhaust port and ascension pipe of a coke oven.
In a by-product coke oven, the by-product gases as well as various effluents generated during the coking process pass from the coke oven chamber through an exhaust port and an ascension pipe into collector apparatus. Because of the nature of the gas and the various chemical reactions of the coking process, there is a tendency for carbon to deposit and build up on the several surfaces which are exposed to the gas, particularly the inner surfaces of the exhaust port and the ascension pipe. If this buildup is not periodically removed, severe operating problems can result, as well as a marked increase in the emission of pollutant fumes.
Because of its design and location above the coke oven, the ascension pipe, as well as the discharge port communicating therewith have heretofore been cleaned manually from the top. More particularly, access was had to the top of the ascension pipe through a hatch in the gooseneck pipe attached thereto, and a ram was manually forced down through the ascension pipe and coke oven exhaust port for scraping carbon deposits from the inner surfaces thereof. This is an extremely difficult and uncomfortable task, both because of the location of the ascension pipe and because of the extremely high heat generated by the coking process. Furthermore, this manual ramming technique sometimes does not adequately clean the inside of the ascension pipe and exhaust port, in which case the remaining deposits must be burned out with an air lance from the top of the ascension pipe, the latter task also being a difficult and uncomfortable one.